“So what was that for? They’re letting us know that they’re going to attack?” Sasha asked. Legon shared her confusion. Why would you tell your enemy that you were coming?
Iselin responded. “There are a lot of formalities between our two countries. But also, in this way the Iumenta can say that they warned us to leave, and therefore our government can’t get angry when they kill us.”
Sydin placed the message on the table. “They have six human legions along the border. We are outnumbered. Defeat is inevitable unless we are able to match their strength. Let us connect.” Legon knew that Elves and Iumenta ran their governments through mental networking, but it was still an odd feeling to join the minds of those that were thousands of years old.
After examining the situation, it appeared that virtually every angle was blocked to them, except one possible route. Normally, the commanding officer would return the message, saying that the Elves were going to uphold their alliance with the humans. But if Legon stated that he and House Evindass were in full support of humanity, then…
He broke the connection. “I don’t get it. I am more than willing to tell the Iumenta that I plan to fight them, but how will that affect this fight?”
Sydin spoke. “Because you are the head of a great house and you are coming out in opposition to Hoelaria and her control of the Cona Empire for the first time, if they hit with their full forces and you die, then the rest of the great houses may declare open war with the Cona Empire and the Iumenta country—the Impa Empire.”
“But isn’t that what all of us want?” Sasha asked.
“They want it, but on their terms. If they send in a small force then the great houses won’t be as apt to go to war,” Sydin stated.
Legon thought about it and decided it was worth a shot. They prepared a reply and at the end he signed it, adding that the House Evindass supported humanity. They gave it to Barnin.
“What do you think will happen?” Legon asked Iselin.
she smiled. “I suspect that they will not attack us with their full army, but I don’t know.”
Legon smiled in return. “So I guess we get to wait.”
She placed her hand on his shoulder and smiled again.
* * * * *
Barnin rode toward the Iumenta envoy. He glanced up at the gray sky. It was rainy this time of year, leaving the sky in a state of perpetual gray. Oftentimes it would rain or drizzle all day, but today was just cloudy. That meant that there could be someone of importance waiting for him. He squinted, looking into the distance at six figures on horseback.
“Iumenta,” he thought. He was thankful that even the Iumenta adhered to the “don’t–kill-the-messenger” code of conduct, but he still didn’t want to talk to them. He didn’t see the army. They would be kept far back from the border so as to not interfere with negotiations. That wouldn’t stop them from slaughtering innocents with small bands of soldiers, though. “But hey, who’s counting?” he thought.
A chill ran down his spine as he reached the Iumenta. The one with long silver hair was Parkas, Hoelaria’s chief warlord. Not a good sign. Next to him was a man with black hair. His clothes had Hoelaria’s crest on it. Barnin wasn’t positive, but he was pretty sure that this was her Senashow—also bad. He raised his mental shields; you never knew what they might do.
He was the most nervous about the Senashow. A boy and his brother, former servants of the queen, had joined the resistance not too long ago. The boy had delivered the queen’s dinner late, and the Senashow was there at the time. The boy had dropped the plate and was missing a tooth as a result. After that the Senashow had blinded his brother as punishment. The boy had been there when he did it, with the Senashow laughing the whole time and calling them apes.
“Focus Barnin,” he thought.
“I come bearing a message from the Pawdin Empire,” Barnin said.
“They send a dog to deliver the message?” the Senashow said coldly. Legon had given him permission to speak his mind. Indeed, the Iumenta would make a lot of assumptions about Legon from this encounter. He needed to be rude. They needed to think House Evindass unstable and reckless. He was good at being rude, but he didn’t care to get killed. Still, you don’t kill the messenger, right?
“Did you think of that all on your own? Here is the message. Should I read it for you, or do you think you can handle it?” Barnin taunted.
Iumenta didn’t flush, but if they did he was sure they would have now. “What did you say to me you worthless little ape?” the Senashow asked.
“I thought I was a dog? Ok, I’ll read it to you. It’s ok.” He unrolled a scroll that had the message. He didn’t want to look at them anymore. He could feel the Senashow’s anger.
Parkas spoke. “Do not get angry, old friend. He is a messenger, and one that is terrified. No doubt he was told to be rude. Give me the message, I can read it.”
He got off Poison and walked to Parkas, handing him the message. He tried not to walk back to his horse too quickly. When he got back on he saw Parkas looking concerned.
“House Evindass has no head.”
“Yes, it does. His name is Legon,” Barnin said with pride.
“There is no heir to Evindass. He was killed in Salmont,” the Senashow responded.
“No, he wasn’t. And he wasn’t killed by any of your men over the last few months either. Now which one of you was that?” he said, looking the two over and pointing a finger.
Parkas glared at the Senashow. Barnin pointed at him. Now was the time to deliver his real message.
“It was you? Tsk, that won’t go over well. Could have taken out the Everser Vald before he was an Elf. That’s rough. Oh well, do you have a response?”
The Senashow started to talk but Parkas held up a hand. He could tell that Parkas was now just as mad as the Senashow, but not at Barnin.
“We will continue our campaign. Tell Legon that I look forward to discussing his surrender in the gardens of Manton, if he lives that long,” Parkas said.
With that they turned and rode off. It had worked. He knew it. Parkas would not send his full force without finding out more about Legon. He relaxed and started back to the Precipice. He had just insulted two of the most powerful people in Airmelia. He didn’t drink, but he might start tonight.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Preparations
“There are two halves to every coin, and together they make one whole that is capable of doing something. If you were to find a way to separate that coin, to take the two halves and set them on their own, you would destroy the worth of both. It is this that I need, but it is also what I fear.”
-Confessions of Love, The First Wife
Sasha followed Legon and Iselin into a room deep inside the dome that was called the preparation room. Along its walls was an assortment of weapons. There were several doorways leading from this room into practice areas, including an indoor archery range.
“Legon, now that you are an Elf, you need a new bow. Your old combat one will not do,” Iselin said.
She handed him a bow that appeared to be plain oak with a simple clear coat. No intricate leaf work ran along its length. It was a simple and uncomplicated design; indeed, it was its simplicity that made it a beautiful weapon. It oozed a refined power. Legon balanced it lightly in his hand.
They walked into the adjoining archery range. The room was a hall that didn’t seem to end, with targets placed at different distances. Each archer stood at a marker indicating the range he or she was shooting at. Sasha saw Elves firing rounds at speeds she never before thought possible. She didn’t even see the arrows fly down the range. In one instant an Elf was drawing the bow and in the next the arrow was somewhere far down range, sticking out of a target.
Legon was standing in front of a sign that read “One hundred yards.” he knocked an arrow and drew back, then hesitated and spoke.
“Iselin, is this the right bow? I can shoot a 200 pounder, I promise.”
She chuckle
d. “I would hope so. Remember, you’re stronger now and I’ve been doing research on humans that translates into Elves.”
“What have you found out?” Sasha asked. She was curious; there were only a few documented cases in history of humans becoming Elves.
“Well there’s not a lot, but one thing that I have figured out is that your translation continues for a few weeks,” Iselin said.
“What do you mean?” Legon asked, dropping the bow to his side.
“Well, when you first changed, Keither said he picked you up and you were around 110 pounds, which is average for Elves. We just don’t need the muscle mass humans do.”
“Ok…”
“But here’s the thing: you are much, much larger than most, if not all, Elves,” Iselin went on.
“I don’t know. I seem to be pretty average,” Legon said.
“Your height is average, but not your muscle mass. you see, the only documented people who have changed said that they kept all their muscle mass but they weighed less. This doesn’t make any sense.”
Sasha thought she knew where this was going.
“These people reported that they continued to gain weight after they changed until they were closer to their old weight,” Iselin explained.
“But Arkin said that you Elves were made of different stuff than humans,” Sasha remarked.
“We are, and it is more lightweight, but Legon was very large before and it’s safe to assume that his weight will go up to 160 or 170 before long, and his strength should follow close behind.”
“160 isn’t that heavy for me,” Legon said.
“But it is for an Elf. you will be able to overpower any Elves and Iumenta you fight. They may be faster, but you will always be stronger, which is a big help in magic.”
“How big?” Legon asked.
“Big enough that you may never test your strength enough to ascend,” Iselin said.
Legon shook his head. “Ok, I don’t want to think about this now. Can I get a real bow please?”
Sasha started when she heard Sydin start to talk. She hadn’t even noticed him enter the room. He sounded amused. “Legon, she’s saying you’re stronger now. That bow is close to seven hundred pounds. It just doesn’t feel that way. you don’t know your strength yet.”
“It’s what?” Legon said
“Here, give it to Sasha. If it’s a hunting bow then she will be able to fire it without issue,” Sydin said.
Legon gave her the bow. If Legon said it was a hunting bow then that’s what it was. It was light. There was no way it was 700 pounds. She knocked an arrow and tried to pull back. The string didn’t move. She pulled harder. Nothing. It was 700 pounds. She felt her jaw drop.
“So, Sasha?” Iselin asked, smiling.
Sasha handed Legon the bow. “It’s 700 pounds.”
Sydin spoke to Legon. “Come, Un Prosa. I wish to test you myself. Iselin, if you will, Sasha.”
“Of course. Sasha, come with me; we will need to change before we begin,” Iselin said, gesturing her to follow.
Sasha felt trepidation at this but followed Iselin anyway. They changed into pants and regular shoes. Iselin took her to a large room which she had requested be stocked with weapons. Iselin asked Sasha if she remembered to bring her Faloon.
“No, I’m sorry. I didn’t know I needed it,” Sasha said.
“That’s fine, we have others.” Iselin walked to a bench and picked up two swords, handing one to Sasha.
“Ise, there’s no way I can beat you. I’m terrible at this.” Sasha felt embarrassed. She saw Iselin as a friend and she didn’t want to look like a fool in front of her. She saw how fast Legon was, and even with magic she was no match.
Iselin spoke gently. “Sash, I’m not trying to embarrass you. This is just to see where you are at. Don’t try and use magic; it won’t help you.”
* * * * *
Iselin took in Sasha’s stance, studying her and feeling bad. This one was so kind and gentle; the last few months must have been horrible for her.
“Don’t we need guards on the blades?” Sasha asked timidly.
“No. I don’t plan on hurting you, nor do I plan on you hurting me, but if you like I will guard the blades with magic.”
There was the telltale flicker of pink. Sasha had fought before; it was necessary when Kovos was killed. But she was using the Mahann then and she had to fight. Now that Sasha was among friends, Iselin could see that Sasha was not really able to handle it. No, it was Legon that had gotten her through the violence. Just as Sasha affected him, he gave her strength; he had a strong connection with her at all times.
Sasha was holding the Faloon in a ready position. A human wouldn’t have seen the slight tremble, but Iselin did.
“Are you connected with your brother?” Iselin asked.
“Well no, not really. Why, should I be?”
“Yes, open the connection just a bit.” The trembling stopped. Iselin breathed in deeply, fighting back anger.
“Iselin, I’m sorry. What did I do wrong?”
“You didn’t do anything wrong. Let’s begin.”
* * * * *
Legon stood across from Sydin, covered in sweat. They had been going at it with the fenrra for close to an hour, and he was finally starting to get tired. To his great pleasure, so was Sydin. He bested Sydin about half the time, which also made him happy. Sydin was six thousand years old and had a lot more experience.
“I can’t believe I’ve beaten you as much as I have.”
Sydin laughed. “Don’t be too proud, Un Prosa. I’ve been ascended for thousands of years, and we dragons don’t use swords as much as you might think.” He winked at him.
“Thank you for the motivational talk. That makes me feel all warm on the inside.”
“That’s why I’m here. Now, I have something new to show you.”
Legon walked over to Sydin, who was picking up a blade in a sheath. The definition of broadsword was like its name: broad. There were small ones for close combat. These only needed one hand and were short. The most common in Airmelia was the hand and a half like Kovos used, and now Keither, but there were still more. Some were six or seven feet long and used like an axe. Sydin was holding a sheathed blade that looked to be along the same lines as the fenrra, but it wasn’t.
“Take it out and have a look.”
The sheath showed that the blade, whatever it was called, was just slightly longer than a hand and a half, but it was significantly wider. Legon gripped the overly long handle and pulled. Like the fenrra, the sword slid out silently. He held it vertically in front of his face, examining it. It was a match to the fenrra in all but the width, which was close to six inches. He instantly felt the balance. Like the fenrra, the handle was a counter weight, but why so wide? It was also very light for a weapon this size.
“Is it hollow?” Legon asked, stunned.
“Very astute of you. In a way, it is. This is a fenna, or a Venefica Battle Sword, as some like to call them,” Sydin explained.
“A what?” Legon asked.
“You see, crystals break; they’re brittle, so you can’t make the core of a sword out of them. But there are some metals that hold magic, and those can form the core of a sword. Although the metals lose power much faster than crystals, you can still see the potential.”
“So you can use these to do magic. But I still don’t see what makes that so special. Can you kill easier with them or something?” Legon asked.
“Well, yes and no. They give you a certain edge. What most do is imbue the blade with wards that affect only the blade. Then if, say, a ball of fire is shot at you, then you can deflect it with the blade and not tax your own wards. They are impractical for offensive magic.”
“Why is that?” Legon asked
“You know that magic is affected by space, so a ward only has to protect the surface of the blade, which is very close. Never does it have to affect anything that’s not itself. If it does it takes much more energy.”
“But you could still do it?” Legon asked.
“Yes, you could. you may try and kill a dragon, for example. They have wards that help against swords and claws, so you could use the energy to get past those wards and more important, the wards that help the dragon heal after getting hurt. But I make this warning to you now, Un Prosa: if you used the fenna in that way it will take all of the blade’s energy, then you are stuck with an oversize fenna against a dragon. So pick your attack well or don’t try it at all,” Sydin said.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Now, did Arkin teach you how to fill objects with magic?” Sydin asked.
“Yes, he did.”
“Good. Fill the sword as much as you can over the next few hours as we have lunch.”
After that they went and ate lunch with Iselin and Sasha. Iselin seemed to be irritated about something, but she wasn’t letting on. Sasha told him about her test with Iselin. She went on to say just how fast and graceful Iselin was and how powerful she was when using magic.
“You fought with magic?” Legon asked.
“Yes, and your sister did very well,” Iselin said.
Ise wrapped her arm around Sasha and squeezed.
“Did her minor help her at all?” Legon wondered.
“Yes, it did. She is very good with elements like metal, fire, and water. I want to start working with her on crystals as soon as we can. I think that she will show promise in that area.”
Sasha beamed at Legon. He was happy to see her doing well. No one other than family had ever told Sasha she was good at something or doing well, or at least they didn’t to her face. He knew just how much Iselin’s praise meant to her.
“That’s good. We need as many people as we can working with them,” Sydin said.
After lunch Legon was to have his test with the fenrra and magic. Sydin said that because Iselin saw him fight with magic once before, they would go straight to working with the blade and magic together. Sasha and Iselin were to join them for this. Sydin explained how to activate spells in the fenrra.
Legon gripped the handle. There were four gold bars that moved down it and into the blade, providing a faster connection. It felt odd in his hand. Once charged, it moved differently. It was connected with him, and as such it felt like a small extension of his arm, but an extension that almost seemed to think for itself.
Sydin pulled out a fenrra of his own and stood opposite Legon. Iselin had been giving Legon new spells to learn, ones that were more advanced than what he had learned on their journey.